Trench-digging machine



w. 6. AND 0. R. HVUIVIPHREYS.

TRENCH DIGGING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.16, 1920.

PatentedfJune 13, 1922.

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W. 6. AND 0 R. HUMPHREYS.

TRENCH DIGGiNG MACHINE. APPLICATION man AUG.16, 1920.

1A1 9,381w v Patented June 13,1922.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2- um/Mow WALTER Gr. HUIVTPZ-IREYS AND OMAR R. HUMEHREYS, OF GMAT-1:15., NEBRASKA.

TRENCH-DIGG-ING NCACHINE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WALTER G. HUM- PHREYS and OMAR R HUMrHRnYs, citizens of theUnited States, residing at Omaha, in the county of Douglas, and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trench-Digging Machines, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improve ments in trench digging machines, and has for an object to provide a machine of this character in which is provided a transversely movable dirt discharging belt with control means, whereby the belt which projects to a considerable distance from the road may be withdrawn out of the path of telegraph poles, trees, and the like to the end that the machine may be driven over a straight course.

It is another object of the invention to provide an improved machine of this character more particularly for use in digging trenches along roads, and which consists in a simple and inexpensive construction of transverse conveyor and mounting therefor enabling the conveyor to be moved back and forth so that its outer end may escape striking objects along the roadway while between such objects delivering dirt to a point remote from the road.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention will be more fully described hereinafter, and will be more particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto. 2

In the drawings, wherein like symbols refer to like or corresponding parts through- I out the several views,

Fig. l is a front elevation of a trench dlgging machine, the digging mechanism be Specification of Letters Patent. Pat gnjhgfl Jung 13 1922,

Application filed August 16, 1920.

Serial No. 403,717.

yond the I-beams 10. The axles 11 receive the rollers or sprockets 12 over which run the tracks or conveyors 13, the rollers 14 being provided to cause the lower runs of such tracks to come into firm contact with the ground over which the machine is moving. These caterpillar tracks are driven from an engine installed on the framework of the machine in a usual manner, but this engine is not shown in the drawings as it forms no part of the present invention.

Standards 15 are erected near the forward portion of the machine and are met at their upper ends by diagonal braces 16 which connect with the forward ends of the I-beams 10. These various beam s, of course, may be of either the ."f-beam or the channel beam construction. Vertical brace rods 17 are also mounted on the beams 10 and extend upwardly and join usual parts of the upper framework of standard forms of machines of this character. X

A bevel gear wheel 18 is journaled on a shaft 19 extending transversely of the ma I chine and meshes with a pinion 20 on a shaft 21 having its axis arranged in the direction of travel of such machine. The gear wheel 18 is provided with a grooved periphery to receive a belt 22 extending to the engine or to a movable portion of the machinefrom Which the necessary power may be derived to rotate said gear wheel.

The shaft 21 is journaled in bracket arms 23 and 24 extending laterally from portions of the machine franiiework, and this shaft '21 is further braced by a beam 25 extending parallel with the same. The beam 25 is carried by arms 26 and 27 which revolve about the shaft 21 as a center. An arm 28. is also fixed to revolve about the shaft 21 extending outwardly of the arm 27 and providing with a hanger 29 a suitable support for a shaft 30 which carries a roller 31 adapted to re ceive the conveyor belt 32.

The shaft 21 and roller 31 are provided respectively with grooved wheels 83 and 34: to receive a belt 35 by which the roller 31 and its conveyor 32 may be driven through the gear wheel and pinion. The hangers 28 and 29 are joined at their lower ends by a conveyor frame composed of the side channel beams 36 which are appropriately secured together by cross braces 37 The ends of the beams 36 which oin with the hangers are curved upwardly, as indicated at 38 in Fig. 1, on substantially the arc of the circle in which the hangers move when swinging about the shaft 21 as a center. The beams 86 carry shafts 39 in which are mounted rollers 40 for supporting at suitable points the conveyor belt 32. The outer end of the belt 32 runs over a roller 41 held in the outermost extremities of the beams 36.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 4, one or more of the beams 36 is provided with series of openings 42 which are arranged to receive teeth 43 on a gear wheel 44. A shaft 45 carries the gear wheel and is journaled in appropriate bearings on the framework of the machine. This shaft 45 also supports a worm wheel 46 which is in mesh with a worm 47 on a transversely extending shaft 48 which is supplied with a crank 49 at an appropriate position to enable the rotation of the shaft 48. A U- shaped or other bracket 50 acts to support the worm 47 on opposite sides.

In operation, the digging mechanism (not shown), after excavating the road and forming a trench, delivers the dirt removed onto a conveyor 51 which moves in the direction of the arrow indicated in Fig. 2. This conveyor 51 may also move over a roller 52 on the shaft 19 so that it is driven through the same belt 22 employed to impart rotation to the transverse conveyor 32. The forward end of the belt 51 is so disposed as to deposit the dirt onto the transversely moving conveyor 32 by which it is removed to a distant point at the side of the road and dumped over the roller 41.

A shield 53 is placed appropriately so as to prevent the spilling over of the dirt from the transverse conveyor 32. It is desirable to have the transverse conveyor extend as far as possible beyond the side of the road in order that the dirt may be deposited at a remote point. This has necessitated prior machines altering their course when going about such obstructions as telegraph poles and trees, and due to the number of these obstructions, the operation of machines of this character has become tedious and eX- pensive. With the present invention, however, the transverse conveyor may extend to the desired distance and when approaching a telegraph pole, such, for instance, as shown at A in Fig. 1, the operator may apply himself to the crank 49 rotating the worm 47 and, consequently, the worm wheel 46 and its connected gear wheel 44.

The engagement of the teeth 43 with the openings 42 in the beam 36 will act to shift the beam in a transverse direction or in other words from the dotted line position .shown in Figs. 1 and 2 to the full line positions so that the roller 41 may escape contact with the pole A.

This movement will be accomplished by the swinging of the various parts about the shaft 21 as a center, and this operation will be performed without any appreciable movement of the beams 36 out of the horizontal due to the curvature 38 near the opposite ends of the beams.

After the pole A has been passed the operator will reverse the direction of movement of the crank 49 so as to restore the transverse conveyor to its outermost position. The deposit of the dirt is shown at B with reference to the pole A and when so piled can be shoveled back from the road by hand whenever desirable or made necessary.

The machine is steered by the usual steering wheel, also forming no part of the invention, and therefore not shown, but it becomes unnecessary to operate such steering wheels except as may be required by the deviation of the road from a straight line, and the trench may, therefore, be formed in a straight line.

We do not wish to be restricted to the size, form, and proportions of the various parts, and obviously changes could be made in the construction herein described without departing from the spirit of the invention, it being only necessary that such changes fall within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a framework -mounted for movement, a transversely shifting conveying mechanism mounted in said framework and extending beyond the side thereof, said mechanism including beams curved at one end, supporting and drive means hingedly connected with the curved ends in said beams, and means for shifting said conveying mechanism back and forth.

2. In a machine of the character described the combination of a framework mounted for movement, conveying mecha nism mounted transversely of the frame work and being shiftable back and forth in a lateral direction, said conveying mechanism being made up in part of frame beams curved at one end and having apertures therein, a toothed wheel meshing in such apertures, a worm device for manually driving said toothed wheel, and driving mechanism for the conveying mechanism hingedly connected with the curved ends of such beams.

3. In a machine of the kind described,

of said beams and having a swinging move- In testimony whereof, We have aflixed our ment with the machine frame, drive means signatures in presence of tWo wltnesses. for the conveyor swinging with said arm,

and ear means in mesh with the conveyin WVALTER H 5 mecli anism and having a handle for manu OMAR HUMPHREYS ally operating the same in either direction Witnesses:

to slide the conveying mechanism back and E. C. STURGES,

forth laterally of the machine. ARTHUR H. STURGEs. 

